Walmart turns to robots and apps in stores

and working construction you know not everything is built exactly according to print
I worked in large construction HVAC installing duct we had a off site shop in another city going off of print that
fabed the duct and duct fittings we need and there wasn't a run that we didn't have to job site modify to move the run left right up or down because some pipe fitter or electrician ran its conduit or pipe not according to print
so there would be no way in hell would you be able to program a robot to install duct work because you cant teach a robot how to improvise when task don't go routinely how it was programed to do it and almost every other trade in construction its workers are required to improvise as a matter of fact that is one of the hallmarks of a good construction trade worker is improvisation to get the job done

 

Good ideas.

I would put more emphasis on research and innovation as that is the source of new jobs. The world has figured out how to do manufacturing. The opportunity lies in innovation in renewable energy, automation, information, etc.

With the rate of change in the job market we can't afford having people trained for one job. We need to start seeing more continuing education (academic and vocational). Kids coming out of high school need a lifelong commitment to education. Getting a good job is not good enough.

In the last presidential election we became more aware of those who have had steady well compensated work in some area and then the earth shifted from under them, leaving far too many of them with unsaleable skills. Demanding that government "fix" that for them is just not how free market capitalism works.

I don't see a defense against this problem outside of people being aware that they need to be constantly focused on updating their skills and education (academic and/or vocational). And for that, we need a serious continuing education program - perhaps something such as Clinton proposed.

We are not going to save jobs by demanding that corporations ignore free market capitalism. And, even if there are structural changes such as the people owning the corporate stock, free market capitalism will demand the change that ends old jobs and creates new jobs with new requirements.

 

Machines have been taking jobs away since the industrial revolution, and despite all that we have 3.7% unemployment and a very tight labor market with job ads everywhere. What happens is that new technology does make production more efficient by reducing the number of workers, but those technological advances also open up new high-tech jobs, and the extra savings from more efficient production allows consumers to spend money on other things that they wouldn't have before.

You just can't ban technological progress because of jobs, because that will stagnate your countries' technological progress compared to other countries. If one company refuses to automate, competitors will automate and drive it out of business. The best thing we can do is ensure that there is good funding for higher education, so people have to skills for these new high-tech jobs. We can also ensure that the profits from automation are also going to workers, not just executives and shareholders, by using progressive taxes. If an unemployment problem does arise, then require time-and-a-half pay after 40 or 35 hours, to encourage employers to hire more people.

 

i didnt have to wait long for the old education trick will solve it all,
kids coming out of those liberal teaching colleges are screwing up kids minds even more

 

Yes, and education is what is required to conceive of these new jobs - to open new job sectors.

We need to move toward having a lifelong commitment to education - not a "get a skill and out" view of education.

I'd add that it seems anomalous that unemployment would be this low, yet wages are stagnant.

 

yeah we will need a lot more
shrinks coming out of those colleges. to treat the masses with depression from what ai and robots have destroyed their lives and family

 

I don't believe it will "solve it all". I DO believe it is an absolute requirement if we plan to have a leadership position in the world economy going forward.

More and more, our economy is moving toward brains being the raw material. Automation, innovation, renewable energy, information, etc. - all depend on brains as the raw material. Manufacturing is looking for those with engineering degrees to figure out how to create, build and operate automated plants. Renewable energy growth is outpacing all other sources as coal and even gas contract - according to the International Energy Agency report for 2017. In fact, renewable energy growth is about the same as the combined growth from all other sources.

The USA has only 5% of that raw material.

I seriously hope nobody believes we're going to maintain our economic position against the 95% without wringing every ounce we can from our 5%.

 

Yes, the objective is to NOT have this happen. But, that means we need our work force to be competitive down to the last individual.

The last presidential cycle made us aware of the rust belt disaster of jobs evaporating and these skilled workers finding no market for those skills.

We can't afford having that problem repeat itself.

And, we're not going to solve it by demanding that corporations ignore free market enterprise.

 

A pathway to the presidency. Why not.

 

Probably the best ways to make lifelong commitment to education reality is to make education job-oriented rather than academic oriented, and to make it extremely affordable. It is strange that wage growth is so slow while unemployment has been so ridiculously low for a while. The best solution to this is to make taxes more progressive and cut taxes on workers.

 

Amen.

I agree that education needs to become far more available, continuously used and not just academically oriented.

However, I'm not really all that excited about education being job oriented. In my own high tech career I've found that those with a broader education are far more capable of shifting between jobs as their careers progress - making it possible for them to take advantage of opportunities and protecting them from the disappearance of their specific job. Plus, it can be a serious benefit for a corporation when employees have at least some amount of knowledge in more than just their own job function - leading to faster advancement as well as more resilience during change.

 

I think that more well-rounded skills should be focused on before college. We have 12 years to teach kids to read, write, do math, social skills, etc, that is the place for high school. Any college education should be focused on getting a job. I also find that people tend to learn other skills on the job or at home anyway, and that college classes are easily forgotten. I barely remember my old chemistry classes anymore, but I am getting pretty good at technical writing because I have to do it at work all the time.

 

High school is not even slightly sufficient. While I think we can do a better job of k-12 education, the amount people need to know about is expanding rapidly. We need to understand what science is, how physics and biology work. We need to understand how our government works and what governments have done in the past. Algebra is just plain not sufficient. Thus our decision making is unsound individually as well as a nation. You can see on this thread what happens when people have been limited to highschool levels of education in these and other areas. And, that can't help but cripple careers as well.

When kids go off to higher education few know much of anything about what "job" they might want. When did they ever get seriously exposed to the opportunity out there? And, requiring a kid of that age to focus on one job category is not some sort of service. College was never designed for job training. The objective of higher education is to grow an ability to learn - which is a lifelong task. In fact, that capability is a K-12 objective, too.

And, let's not forget that the major reason professionals (such as engineers) get fired is that they don't know how to work together in groups that have a common goal. That doesn't come in engineering class.

I'm aware that humans forget what they learned when that knowledge is ignored. But, I don't believe that's a justification for cutting out that portion of education from the start.

 

FYI, those kids coming out of colllege are the ones building the AI to take over the world, and hence you

 

And, a human truck driver should be especially aware of that.

 

Living the Amish style.

 

not without its charms i’m sure, but how r u gonna play candy crush?????

 

by playing tetris

 

Sorry not feeling one bit of sympathy for shelf stockers and cashiers. You know they use mostly robots to build cars and trucks now. I for one can't wait for this to be everywhere because I am sick and tired of going to the store to find empty shelves and displays constantly. Either the store can't find enough help or the help they have sucks diarrhea covered ass cheeks. Its much more efficient to use the self checkouts now than a cashier as well.

#TeamAIOverlords

 

Where are you?

I've never heard of unstocked shelves.

 

They are testing large run hauls now!!!

 

Well, a lot of positive things can be said for using robotics wherever possible.

For instance, robots don't 'call in sick', have weird, personal 'issues' that keep them from working, have 'car trouble', have to leave work because of their children, trouble with their "ex", etc., etc.

Also, they don't bitch, complain, and threaten to sue their bosses with claims of "sexual abuse" claims from decades ago, either.

"Sex? I just cruise porn websites like humans do!"

 

but the negative the others at work wont get any over time anymore

 

I hope society at large is prepared to accept UBI, because if automation takes over a large enough percentile of low skill labor it will be demanded.

 

that or yellow vest riots like in france